Screening means for cleaning or other treatment of articles permeable to air

ABSTRACT

THE PRESENT INVENTION RELATES TO MEANS FOR CLEANING OR OTHER TREATMENT OF ARTICLES PERMEABLE TO AIR, SUCH AS CARPETS, RUGS, BEDDING, ARTICLES OF CLOTHING AND THE LIKE, BY DIRECTING A FLOW OF AIR THROUGH THE GOODS SPREAD OUT ON A SUPPORT FRAME OR A BOTTOM PERMEABLE TO AIR. THIS SUPPORT FRAME OR BOTTOM COVERS A POLYGONAL, PREFERABLY RECTANGULAR OR SQUARE OPENING COMMUNICATING WITH A CHAMBER THROUGH WHICH AIR IS FLOWING. SUCH A TREATMENT MAY SERVE VARIOUS PURPOSES. USUALLY IT IS USED TO REMOVE DUST AND/OR TO DISINFECT THE GOODS. IN THE LATTER CASE THE AIR SERVES AS CARRIER FOR DISINFECTANT WHICH IS FINELY DISTRIBUTED THEREIN. ACCORDING TO THE INVENTION THERE IS PROVIDED AT LEAST ONE MASKING SHEET OR WEB OF AT LEAST SUBSTANTIALLY AIR-TIGHT MATERIAL TIGHTLY ATTACHED ALONG ONE SIDE EDGE TO SAID SUPPORT FRAME ON BOTTOM ALONG ONE SIDE OF SAID OPENING, A BAR EXTENDING ALONG THE OPPOSITE EDGE OF SAID MATERIAL SO AS TO PERMIT THE MASKING SHEET OR WEB TO BE FOLDED AROUND SAID BAR OVER SAID SUPPORT FRAME OR BOTTOM TO SAID FROM SAID ATTACHED SIDE EDGE.

Dec. 7, 1971 c. T. E. FOLKE 3,624,359

SCREENING MEANS FOR CLEANING OR OTHER TREATMENT 01' ARTICLES PERMEABLE TO AIR Filed Feb. 20. mo

CARL 7740s EVE/PT FOL/(E /NVENTOR.

A TTORNEY United States Patent 3,624,859 SCREENING MEANS FOR CLEANING OR OTHER TREATMENT OF ARTICLES PERMEABLE TO AIR Carl Tage E. Folke, Hagersten, Sweden, assignor to AB Vibrasug, Johanneshov, Sweden Filed Feb. 20, 1970, Ser. No. 13,090 Claims priority, application Sweden, Apr. 9, 1969, 5,004/ 69 Int. Cl. A471 5/38 U.S. Cl. 307 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The present invention relates to means for cleaning or other treatment of articles permeable to air, such as carpets, rugs, bedding, articles of clothing and the like, by directing a flow of air through the goods spread out on a support frame or a bottom permeable to air. This support frame or bottom covers a polygonal, preferably rectangular or square opening communicating with a chamber through which air is flowing. Such a treatment may serve various purposes. Usually it is used to remove dust and/or to disinfect the goods. In the latter case the air serves as carrier for disinfectant which is finely distributed therein. According to the invention there is provided at least one masking sheet or web of at least substantially air-tight material tightly attached along one side edge to said support frame on bottom along one side of said opening, a bar extending along the opposite edge of said material so as to permit the masking sheet or web to be folded around said bar over said support frame or bottom to and from said attached side edge.

For obtaining an effective result of the means referred to in the above introduction paragraph it is important that the entire air flow through the support frame or bottom and the opening covered by this frame or bottom is as far as possible directed through the articles to be cleaned or treated and not to any great extent beside said articles. The articles must therefore cover the support frame or bottom so that no large parts thereof are left uncovered. However, this objective raises a problem since frequently articles of different dimensions and shape are to be cleaned or treated on one and the same support frame or bottom on different occasions, and thus it is impossible to cover the frame or bottom sufficiently only with the articles in question and it is also impossible to supplement this covering in a satisfactory way by screening off by means of standard masking means. It is already knownin so-called vacuum-cleaning tables on which the article to be vacuum-cleaned is drawn over a suction opening which is narrow in the direction of movement of said article and wide in the transverse directionto adjust the length of the suction opening according to the width of said article by drawing a soft covering strip, preferably from each end of the suction opening, over said opening so far that only a desired length of the suction opening corresponding to the Width of the article is left free from the covering. The strip or strips, which are soft along both its end and side edges, are pulled out from storage spaces pertaining to the arrangement, between guides for the lateral edges of said strip or strips. These arrangements are complicated and space consuming. Moreover, such covering strip or strips cannot be used satisfactorily to screen off or to cover the considerably larger surfaces which are provided in support frames or bottoms of the type with which the present invention is concerned, primarily because said strip (or strips) is (are) not sufficiently stable along the edges. A considerable disadvantage would also arise in connection with the invention since strips of this type cannot be positioned and maintain their covering position over such a support frame or bottom when the articles to be treated are to be exchanged without the airsuction being interrupted. Such an interruption during disinfection would mean that disinfectant vapour remaining above the frame or bottom would spread in an uncontrollable way to the surroundings every time the articles were exchanged.

The main object of the present invention is to provide simple, easily handled screening means which is considerably more suitable for avoiding the disadvantages mentioned than the known means now for masking frames or bottoms of the type referred to.

Some embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a first and a second embodiment, respectively, of the means according to the invention,

FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 show plan views of three embodiments of the invention according to FIG. 1, and

FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate sectional side views of two masking positions for the means according to FIG. 3.

All the figures are diagrammatical and are only intended to serve as examples. Identical parts in the different figures are designated with the same reference numbers.

In FIGS. 1 and 3, a vacuum chamber 1 has its sides 2, 3, 4 and 5 covered at the top by a support frame or bottom 6 permeable to air. Through a suction conduit 7 the vacuum chamber is connected to suction fan 8 with an outlet conduit 9. This arrangement is suitable, for example, in cases in which articles to be vacuum-cleaned only are placed on the support frame. In FIG. 2 the support frame is located in a container or casing 10 through which air circulates via conduit 7, fan 8 and conduit 9. This arrangement is suitable for disinfection of articles on frame 6 since a disinfectant can be introduced through a conduit 11. In both cases it is necessary to mask or screen off the support frame 6. According to FIGS. 3, 6 and 7 according to the invention means for this purpose may consist of a masking sheet or web in the form of an airtight cloth 12, for example of plastic material or airtight fabric, which at one side edge 13 (FIG. 6) is sealed along one side -4 to the support frame 6 and along its opposite edge 14 is provided with a bar 15 around which the masking sheet or web 12 can be folded over the support frame from completely folded position (FIG. 6) at side 4 to completely unfolded position at side 5 (FIG. 7) and to arbitrary positions therebetiween. In this manner areas of the support frame or bottom 6 may be left open to the vacuum chamber, and said areas may be adjusted according to different dimensions of the articles. Due to its rigidity and weight, the bar 15 will hold the cloth 12 at any stage of unfoldment firmly spread across the frame or bottom 6 without requiring any additional guides, even when air is sucked through unmasked parts of the bottom frame.

FIG. 4 shows how two such masking sheets 12a and 12b can be placed opposite each other, which may be desirable with long support frames. When the extent of masking is large, in this and the previous case the open area gradually will take the shape of a narrow slot, which, in many cases, may be unsuitable. This drawback can be avoided with the arrangement according to FIG. 5 in which masking sheets '12 and 120, respectively, are provided at two adjacent sides 4 and 2, so that by masking in two transverse directions, greater choice will be availabl for shaping the open area to more or less square form regardless of the size. Other combinations as to the number of masking sheets and their positioning can also be arrived at with the guidance of the examples given.

A satisfactory embodiment of the invention comprises a combination of the embodiments according to FIGS. 4 and 5 so as to make the unit consisting of bars '15 and the masking sheets as thin as possible.

What I claim is:

1. In means for cleaning or other treatment of at least one article permeable to air, such as carpets, bedding, articles of clothing and the like comprising means for directing a flow of air through said article or articles spread out on a support frame or bottom permeable to air, which covers a polygonal opening communicating With a chamber having means for supplying a stream of air therethrough, the provision of at least two masking sheets of at least substantially air-tight material, said sheets being respectively tightly attached along one side edge each to said support frame or bottom along adjacent sides of said opening, a bar extending along the op- 4 posite edge of said material so as to permit each masking sheet to be folded around said bar over said support frame or bottom to and from said attached side edge.

WILLIAM I. PRICE, Primary Examiner C. K. MOORE, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 15'310; 68240 

